Headway, the Brain Injury Association, launches in Rochdale

The mission of Headway is to support people, their families and carers affected by brain injuries by helping to promote an understanding of all aspects of brain injury and by providing information support and services to them while at the same time increasing an awareness of the consequences of brain injury within the local community thereby supporting campaigns to reduce the risk of this injury.

Sharon Halfpenny, from AST Hampsons, who is on the management committee of the association, works with clients with brain injury and is also the mother and main carer of her son who has a brain injury.

Sharon said: “We are a group of concerned professionals who have joined together to establish this new branch in our local area for people who have suffered a brain injury.

“This project is something we all believe in passionately. It is very important to us that we achieve as wide an audience as possible to get the message out to people in this area that this new service is available.

“The launch went very well and everyone who attended said how much they enjoyed it.”

Headway Rochdale and Bury aims to build wider co-operation between local services for the benefit of brain injured people and their families/support network. In doing so, the association hopes to promote and improve investigation into brain injury, the screening process, care and assessment, rehabilitation and ultimately social re-integration and to break down the barriers and misconceptions surrounding brain injury.

Monthly meetings will be held by the group in Heywood with the first meeting organised for Wednesday 12 November.